The Haute Autorité de Santé has decided to refuse early access to antiviral treatment from the Merck laboratory. “We have not had proof of its effectiveness”, explains on franceinfo the president of the college of HAS Dominique Le Guludec.
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“We thought it would be a waste of chance for patients to have this drug“, declared on franceinfo Dominique Le Guludec, president of the college of the High Authority of Health, after the negative opinion delivered by the HAS on the antiviral treatment of Merck against the Covid-19.
“We have not had the demonstration of its effectiveness, and at best, it would be 30% with a lot of questions and questions about the study.“, she detailed. The professor recalls that in August, the HAS authorized another treatment, which”more than 80% efficacy in the same indications“, and which is therefore to be privileged. She also recalled that the development of a drug was”very difficult all the time, to have a drug that works, you have to try a lot. “
The HAS refused this curative treatment administered orally, but at the same time it validated another treatment, preventive this time, based on monoclonal antibodies and administered intramuscularly. Developed by Astra Zeneca, it is intended for “all people who are poorly protected by vaccination, immunocompromised, and its effectiveness seems to last six months“, said Dominique Le Guludec.
She explained that this new treatment from Astra Zeneca will be easier to administer than the first similar treatment already available. “Obviously the patients had difficulty accessing it, it will be much easier to do in town“, she assured.
The president of the HAS also recalled that many trials were underway for other treatments. “In the next two to three weeks we will see two new antibody treatments from GSK and Pifzer arrive.. “